November 16, 1997 message
Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren
Glen Arm, Maryland USA
based upon Ephesians 5:8-20

Fourteen years ago, Ted Pratt wandered through a page of my life. It was the summer Karen
and I spent in Alaska, working with a Mennonite House Church. Ted had recently joined this
group, and was proving to be quite a blessing to them. In fact, that was a word he used
quite a bit. "Youre such a blessing to me," he would often say, peppering
his sentences with "blessing" left and right. Looking at him (youll find a
picture on a bulletin insert), the word "blessing" seems somewhat out of place.

At that time, he was a rough and tumble guy, ideally suited for the far north. In the
course of his 38 years, he had manned a nuclear submarine, worked on a ranch, dug
underground as a miner - all sorts of hard-labor occupations. On first glance, you would
expect other words out of his mouth than "blessing." There it was, however, and
he was a blessing himself, living out what he said. No, not in a syrupy-sweet sort of way.
He was no mans fool, and could be quite a burr in the flesh if you touched the areas
he cared passionately about.

For instance, he had become a pacifist, and was quite point-blank with other Christians
about it. "How can a follower of Jesus bear arms against someone else?,"
hed ask - not meanly, but very seriously. Of course, he hadnt always believed
this. When he was in the Navy, he wasnt a Christian. The Christians he knew on board
were somewhat obnoxious. They never asked questions about the payload their submarine was
carrying in the North sea, whether they could launch a nuclear missile in good conscience.
They seemed more interested in removing smutty pictures from other sailors lockers,
and telling the wives of these sailors back home about the sexual adventures of their
husbands at various ports of call. Was this really shining forth the light of Christ? If
so, such light didnt interest Ted one bit at that time.

However, somewhere down the road he became a Christian. And when he was baptized, the
water washed through everything. No part of his life remained dry. It wasnt just a
matter of believing the right things. It was allowing the light of Christ to shine upon
everything. The word "blessing" was for him synonymous with the light of Christ.
He would call something a "blessing" even if it was a burr in his flesh, that is
if he detected Christ in that burr, shining upon a part of his life that needed attention.

That was 14 years ago. Since then, Ted has wandered into other fields. Last I heard he
was a chiropractor in the Midwest. Look at the picture and imagine that fellow working on
your back. I have no doubt hes a good one, and that he continues to be a blessing
wherever God has planted him. (for
more on Ted, click here)

"Once you were darkness," the apostle Paul wrote to the believers in Ephesus
long ago, "but now in the Lord you are light." In the preceding verses he has
more to say about the darkness, but thats not his focus. Hes not so much into
all the "nos," the "ought nots" of Christian living, as
hes into the "yess." Mind you, the "thou shalt nots"
are important - but without the light of Christ shining into every nock and cranny of our
life, those commandments make little sense. They are only words.

At a camp meeting this week we began the discussion that will lead to listing the
values we hold as a Brethren camp out of which our "nos" flow. You see,
before they arrive every summer camper receives a list of things not to bring or do. They
also sign a covenant indicating that they will live by the rules while at camp. But these
rules, these "nos" are based upon some positive values, things we believe
are important. For instance, foul language used against another is out-of-place for many
reasons, one being that we hold each other in respect and love. Thats the positive
value behind the rule. When we look at another in the light of Christ, how can we then
abuse them with hate-filled words.

To be a Christian is to live "in the light of Christ." Its not merely a
matter of saying the right words, but living them out. "Dont let yourselves
get taken in by religious smooth talk," the apostle wrote. "God gets
furious with people who are full of religious sales talk but want nothing to do with him.
You groped your way through that murky once, but no longer. Youre out in the open
now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on
with it! The good, the right, the true - these are the actions appropriate for daylight
hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it."(Eph.
5:6--10, Peterson)

To "live in the light of Christ," is to willingly
expose every aspect of who we are to God. We cant hide from God. We are known
completely by the One who created us. It makes little sense to try to keep parts of
ourselves out of Gods sight. Its impossible really. What makes more sense is
to allow the light to shine, that is to open our eyes and look, not only at what is
revealed in us, but at the path which is being illuminated for us.

Lets shift metaphors and talk about the water of baptism, after all - thats
what were about on this day. Actually, it is generally believed that this
mornings scripture text from Ephesians quotes an early Christian baptismal hymn.
Based on the first verse of Isaiah 60, a line from that hymn sang out, "Sleeper,
awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." Times of spiritual
rebirth have over the years been referred to as "awakenings," which is
appropriate. Coming to know Christ is very much like awakening from sleep.

Some of us are better risers than others when it comes to the morning. Whether we are
pop-out-of-bed types, or gradual second-cup-of-coffee people, there comes that moment when
the sleep is rubbed out of our eyes and we face into the light of a brand new day.
Thats the image used by this verse of scripture, only its not a comfy bed from
which we are awakened (then again, it may be very warm and snugly, which is why many
people fight rising from it into Christs light). Petersons translation puts it
this way:

"Wake up from your sleep,
Climb
out of your coffins;
Christ
will show you the light!"

Our Brethren ancestors took what seemed to be almost pride in being baptized in unusual
circumstances. The first baptism in Germantown, Pennsylvania took place on Christmas Day,
outside in a stream. I recall visiting, over the years, with several meek and mild elderly
Dunker sisters whose face would light up when describing how the ice needed to be broken
the day they were baptized. Nothing like cold water to wake someone up, thats for
sure, just so long as it didnt make them numb spiritually.

Wake up! Thats part of whats being symbolized by baptism. Living in the
light of Christ is waking up to a new day. Baptism is like a shower that wakes us up in
the morning. Now, us Brethren prefer baths when it comes to this spiritual awakening,
perhaps because we believe Christ needs to soak into every part of who we are. Yes,
its a matter of getting clean, but its also a realization that there is no
part of our lives that Christ doesnt touch. The word "realization" is
intentional, for we believe that each person needs to realize this for his or herself.
Thats why we consider baptism an adult decision.

Now, waking up and walking in the light of Christ is a lifelong process. Today for two
of our young people is only the beginning step. Some of the rest of us may be getting a
bit sleepy in our own walk. In reality, awakening - rising with Christ is something we
need to do each and every day. We need to live out of our baptism, even if it did happen a
long time ago. In the grand scheme of things, you know, it took place only yesterday.

Sisters and brothers,
"Wake up from your sleep,
Climb
out of your coffins;
Christ
will show you the light!"
...
Perhaps you recall singing the song....